Bamboo Forest at Wakayama Farm

Drive about 1.5 hours north from Tokyo. In Utsunomiya—just 50 minutes from Tokyo Station by shinkansen—you’ll find a farm with a vast bamboo grove. Its lush greenery and quiet calm make it feel like you’ve stepped into a story. This one-of-a-kind, breathtaking bamboo forest is also frequently used as a filming location for movies and commercials. Cosplay photo shoots are welcome too, so if you’re interested, apply in advance via the reservation form.

If you want to really take in nature, you can also choose to camp out using a hammock tent. You can rent camping essentials like a hammock tent, a fire pit, firewood, a cooler box, and blankets, so it’s easy to enjoy (reservation required).

On Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, illumination begins around sunset. When bamboo lanterns and bamboo balls are lit and the bamboo grove is beautifully illuminated, an even more magical atmosphere fills the forest (admission fee and illumination fee / weekends and holidays only). There’s also plenty to do, like enjoying matcha in a bamboo cup (weekends and holidays only), relaxing in a hammock in the bamboo grove, hands-on craft workshops making bamboo bows and arrows, bamboo water guns, and bamboo lanterns, and bamboo shoot harvesting (held from mid-April to early May), plus many other bamboo-themed activities. At “Bamboo Forest Cafe & Restaurant,” you can enjoy dishes made with bamboo shoots and chestnuts harvested on the farm, along with fresh local ingredients. There are lots of experiences you can only have here.